Beowulf V. The Odyssey

Both The Odyssey and Beowulf share many similarities. The Odyssey is one of the most famous works in all of Greek literature, and although Beowulf is not as famous as The Odyssey, it is well known for being one of the first epic poems written in England. Since both books were created in Europe, not only do they share similarities, but they also have some great differences. Each of these similarities and differences are very important to examine.

All epic poems consist of a hero, and both Beowulf and The Odyssey have their heroes. The biggest difference between the two heroes is their fate. In The Odyssey, Odysseus eventually reaches his final destination after twenty years and manages to take back all that he lost. Odysseus defeats, outsmarts, and survives every god, goddess, or beast that he encounters on his journey. Although Beowulf accomplishes a lot throughout the duration of his lifetime, he was mainly respected as a King, not as a warrior.

When Odysseus makes it back to his home in Ithaca, the reader feels a great sense of relief. Although the conclusion of The Odyssey is much happier than that of Beowulf's, both books had very well written endings. Beowulf's ending was just as good as The Odyssey's in that the book ends with Beowulf dying a glorious death in battle, trying to save the lives of others.

Both Beowulf and Odysseus had significantly different methods of handling their opponents. In all of Odysseus' battles, he used his mental strength to defeat his enemies. A great example of this occurs when Odysseus blinds Polyphemus (the Cyclops). When Beowulf had to fight Grendel's mother, he was put in the same position that Odysseus was put in when he had to fight Polyphemus. Although both heroes were placed in a situation where they were battling monsters on their own property, they both managed to win their battle. However, instead of using intelligence like Odysseus, Beowulf used his bravery and strength to successfully kill Grendel's mother. Examples of Beowulf's bravery can be seen from the very beginning of the book when he was fighting with Grendel, and refused to use any weapons.

Although both books were passed on by word of mouth and were changed over many generations, a strong presence of a God (Beowulf) or gods (The Odyssey) can still be seen. For example, on lines 440-455 before fighting Grendel, Beowulf recognizes God and appeals to him for help in his upcoming challenge by saying, "Whichever one death fells must deem it a just judgment by God... Fate goes ever as fate must." At the same time, Beowulf also recognizes that God will do as he pleases. The Greek gods on the other hand are a bit more intriguing, mainly because they are portrayed as human beings with immortal powers. Having multiple gods, however, was not always a good thing especially for Odysseus. Throughout his long journey, Odysseus managed to displease many of the gods, who made his struggle to get back home worse by prolonging it. One example of Odysseus displeasing a god can be seen when he blinded Poseidon's son Polyphemus. Enraged, Poseidon punished Odysseus by blowing him and his ships repeatedly off course. Nevertheless, since Odysseus had many gods on his side he managed to get back home with their help.

In The Odyssey, the reader only gets to read about a specific portion of Odysseus life. However, in Beowulf the reader gets to see Beowulf grow up from a young man to an adult. Although both Beowulf and Odysseus mature, they both do so in completely different ways. As a young man, we see that Beowulf has too much self-pride and loves to boast, however as he grows up he follows the advice that King Hrothgar gives him (about the curse of pride) and changes the way he acts. Proof of that can be seen when Beowulf was offered the Geatish throne, instead of jumping at it, he refuses to take it because it was not rightfully his. At the end of the book, Beowulf decides to fight the dragon terrorizing the Geats on his own. On the other hand, by making this decision, it shows that even at the age of seventy Beowulf still had a lot of self-pride, and wanted his people to see him as a hero before he died. Odysseus however changed in many ways after leaving from the Trojan War. When Odysseus departed from Troy, he had everything, not only was he a king and a hero, but he was also rich and had a beautiful wife. Leaving Troy with a large crew, Odysseus eventually arrives home in Ithaca with nothing. When Odysseus blinded Polyphemus, Polyphemus called to his father and asked that Odysseus return to Ithaca a broken man. After a long journey and a ton of hardships along the way, Odysseus managed to return to his homeland only to find out that no one was loyal to him, and his palace had been taken over by suitors. But even after being broken man, Odysseus managed to grow up and reclaim everything he owned.

Both Beowulf and The Odyssey are great books to read. However, both poems tend to be a slight bit depressing as they both revolve around the theme of hardship and struggle, Nevertheless, they are important as they provide us with information about the Greeks and the Anglo-Saxons.